Jill Anna Ponasik is clear: Antiology is not a world premiere, even though it’s never been seen before. As the producing artistic director of Milwaukee Opera Theatre (MOT) explains, “With Antiology, we are making the development process into art. It’s jumping inside the process of developing a new work in a way that’s both entertaining and sharable.”
The new work is being developed from Dana Spiotta’s well-regarded 2006 novel, Eat the Document. The novel’s dovetailing storylines shift between a militant radical milieu circa 1970 and the early ’90s. The word “antiology” appears in the text and alludes to the refusenik stance of one of the main characters, Nash, a Weatherman-like fugitive in the ’70s who, in the ’90s present, runs a grungy anarchist book store. The other main character, Mary, was once his girlfriend and was also on the run—until reinventing herself under a new name as a suburban mom. Her 15-year-old son, Jason, spends most of his time immersed in the music of his mother’s era.
Antiology is the third collaboration between MOT and the talented trio consisting of composer John Glover, librettist Kelley Rourke and singer Andrew Wilkowske. “I love it that they are using our modest commissions in three unique ways,” Ponasik says. The first, the cheekily titled Guns N’ Rosenkavalier, was a rock-song/art-song recital. The second, Lucy, was an opera based on the true story of a psychologist who tried to raise a chimpanzee as a human. Both works debuted with MOT in Milwaukee and went on to performances elsewhere. Ponasik apologetically explains that MOT is “too small” to fully commit to staging Antiology as an opera at this time, “so we built a container for them to conduct their research together as a public event.”
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A Three-Part Performance
To be staged at Boswell Book Co., the event has three components. First, Spiotta will read excerpts from Eat the Document and answer audience questions. Then, MOT’s multi-instrumentalist 1970s Operatic Jam Band will perform a dozen period songs mentioned in the novel—an eclectic repertoire ranging from Bob Dylan to the Beach Boys to Charles Mingus. Finally, Wilkowske will sing a handful of compositions by Glover intended for the finished opera. “[Glover] says that new opera should be memorable to the audience, who should be able to sing it! He wants to end with a sing-along! It’ll be like the coolest book club ever,” Ponasik says.
The completed opera will be an exploration of the novel’s three protagonists. “Nash refuses to bust anyone for shoplifting,” Ponasik says. Instead, he places signs around the shop imploring: “Don’t Steal—We’re Not the Man.” “Nash is determined to live in the world but not be in the world,” she continues. “Jason has a geeky knowledge of a tiny niche art form—he’s musically obsessed and makes finely grained distinctions between different takes of Brian Wilson recordings.” As for Mary, “She’s quiet, stoic, mysterious.” Part of the story comes as Jason attempts to plumb the mystery of his mother, who, like outlaws from an earlier epoch, tried to remake herself on a new frontier.
Eat the Document, Ponasik explains, connects with the American ideal of self-invention, “the idea that you can be whoever you want to be. The characters in the novel show us that it’s possible but there are grave consequences. It says that we can’t let go of our past—as a country or as individuals. We can ignore the past, but it’s still there.”
Antiology will be performed 8 p.m., Oct. 10-12 at Boswell Book Co., 2559 N. Downer Ave. For more information, visit milwaukeeoperatheatre.org.
